Saturday, December 12, 2009

I made carob brownies, chocolate chip brownies, Scottish shortbread, and Holiday Coffee Cake. But I'm not going to keep all the glory to myself. I'm going to share my luscious recipes with you! Although I normally don't post on Apple Pie over the weekend, I'm making an exception this weekend because:

it's Advent -- a very special time of year,

"we are having a party,"

my heart is full and overflowing with joy,

you are my special bloggy friends,

and many of you are inside right now baking your hearts out.

So merry, merry, merry Christmas from me!

This morning I am eating my Holiday Coffee Cake. I created this recipe myself. It reminds me of the rich, fruit-bountiful recipes of my childhood. I made it yesterday for the first morning my college son is home. Just think: he will wake up to this wonderful cake and his favorite coffee and a hug from mom! Does it get any better?

4. Blend the first five dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Set aside.

5. Beat the flax eggs or egg whites with a fork for a minute in the medium bowl. Directions for making flax eggs are below. Beat the sugar into the eggs until the mixture is well-blended and frothy, just a minute or two. Set it aside.

6. Peel and dice the apple. Put the apple pieces in the cup of orange juice in the small bowl. Let the apple soak for a minute.

7. Chop the cranberries. I like to chop each berry in half, but you don't have to be that precise about it.

8. Pour the apple mixture, chopped cranberries, applesauce, raisins, and nuts on top of the flax egg/egg white blend. Fold the fruit into the eggs.

9. Now pour your blended wet ingredients on top of your dry ingredient in the large bowl. Stir with a large, stiff spoon until it is just moistened and there are no dry spots.

10. Put the batter into the prepared baking dish and spread evenly.

11. Bake at 350 for 30-45 minutes, until the top is golden brown and the sides have pulled away slightly from the pan. The top of the bread will be springy to the touch.

Serving Suggestions:

You can eat this hot or cold the next day. I would recommend waiting ten minutes to serve it because the fruit in the cake is very hot. You may wish to decorate your cake with a simple icing. I prefer the simple flavors of the cake itself without any added sweetness.

9 comments:

I would really like this! Would whole wheat flour work instead of the white flour? I shared my whole grain pancake recipe on my blog this morning. It uses all whole wheat and the consistency is wonderful. They aren't heavy at all. At least I don't think so. So I'm thinking I could probably substitute whole wheat in your recipe and it would be fine. What do you think?

Sounds so good! Thanks for posting the 'bad' ingredients along side the 'best for you' ones. Those of us who have not switched to the healthier versions greatly appreciate not having to figure the conversions out. :-)